Recently Collabr sponsored a cross-discipline collaboration contest in partnership with the University of Trinidad and Tobago. We talked with Shannon Young, who was one of 4 winners from this contest. Responses have been edited for clarity.

Team Collabr: How did you get started in your chosen artistic medium?

Shannon Young: I got started in music by learning drums at the age of 15. I was introduced to music technology during the certificate programme at UTT, which was then converted into a degree.

TC: Who are your biggest creative influences?

SY: My biggest creative influences music-wise are artists such as Daft Punk, Brian Eno and The Books. In terms of visuals, I take a lot of influence from shows I’ve watched and media I’ve consumed (music videos, cartoons etc.)

TC: How did you find your fellow collaborators for your winning entry, and how did you use the collabr app to work together?

SY: I found my fellow collaborator, Kayden, through the Bachelors in Digital Media Arts programme. After I heard about the contest, I encouraged him to join

TC: What’s the meaning or message behind your winning entry?

SY: The entry is a snippet from an audio/visual album we had worked on together as a part of my final project. The video depicts a small segment of the ending clip. The character featured in the clip is one of the main characters from the album.

TC: What did you like best about collaborating with your fellow students to make your entry?

SY: The thing I liked best was the opportunity to show something we had worked very hard on to an unfamiliar audience. Before the contest, no one had seen completed clips of our project, so the opportunity to show a piece of it  (even if it was a short and small snippet) was very exciting.

TC: How are you going to use your prize money?

SY: I am going to put the prize money towards getting some new equipment – hopefully, a set of speakers or a microphone and interface for home recordings

TC: What was the most rewarding part of this whole experience for you?

SY: The most rewarding part of the experience was trying to rally people to vote for our post. It was the first time I tried asking people individually to check out something I had made, and I was shocked and pleased that so many people reacted positively and listened when I asked for them to make an account! It felt like my family and friends were truly rooting for me.

TC: What are your artistic goals?

SY: My artistic goals are somewhat vague, but generally, I want to become a better MIDI programmer and beat-maker so that I can bring the ideas I have in my head to life in a more accurate way.